We’ve just converted the old vicar’s vestry (dumping ground) at Holy Trinity into a crisp, clean church office. There are already early benefits of having a working environment outside the vicarage. These include:

The separation of study and office. I now aim to work in the office and prepare in my study (or the library or MacDonalds, which I do regularly)

The separation of home and work. I now have a sense of going to work and coming home from work when I use the church office. This has been really healthy for both my sense of being at work and my sense of being at home with my family.

We’re not there yet, because not all the systems are in place, but we are beginning to enjoy the benefits of working together as Richard Perkins has written in his post It’s not good for a man to be alone.

Our church hall is a busy place and so there is a wider social benefit. I bump into people or they drop in to the office. And so, there are increased opportunities for informal ministry and prayer.

The work space has to be kept tidy, because we hot desk. This improves my productivity.

All files and records can be kept in one place. This is an aspect of church life which I have under-estimated the impact of. If the child-protection register or health and safety policy or funeral records or utility bills are kept at the houses of various church officers then getting any information is time consumming. With records stored centrally, anyone who needs the information can access it at any time.

The office provides some form of accountability as other people know when you are at work and that you are working.

We’ve only been working in the office for three weeks and so more benefits might emerge. Has anyone else noticed the benefits of working in an office in a team?